11/4/19 – Interview with Danú

Can you talk a little about your ensemble’s origin?
We started out with Danú in 1995 when we got asked to represent Ireland at the world’s largest Interceltic festival in Lorient, France. We were a 4 piece in 1995 but grew to 7 piece band in the years after, adding most of the instruments in Irish music to our sound.

Where did the name Danú come from?
Danú is the name of the Queen goddess in Irish mythology, we were given this name in 1995 as a band title.

What is the instrumentation of your group, and how is it important to your signature sound?
Danú features instruments such as accordion, fiddle, flute, tin whistle, Uilleann Pipes (Irish Pipes), Bodhran (Irish Drum), Guitar, and Irish Bouzouki. All of these instruments make the band sound uniquely Irish and we arrange our songs and instrumental music around these great instrument tones.

What can an audience member expect to hear and see during your Emerald Isle Christmas performance?
This show is Danú’s Christmas season show where we present a unique concert based around the music and traditions of Ireland. We will encourage the audience to be involved in some songs and will have some fantastic dancers join the group for some lovely instrumental pieces. We will all have fun!

Describe a couple of Christmas or New Year traditions that are unique to Ireland.
The Christmas holidays in Ireland begins on Christmas eve (25th Dec) and last right up to January 6th. Traditions vary from the lighted Candle on Christmas Eve to the Wren Hunt on St.Stephen’s Day (Dec 26th) are all quite unique to Ireland, full of unique music, song (in the Gaelic and English language)and dance. We have many familiar hymns that people will be familiar with also and when performed in the Irish language alongside the Irish instruments give a wonderful unique sound.

Acclaimed vocalist Nell Ní Chróinín is relatively new to the group. Can you speak a little bit about her role?
Nell is one of Ireland’s unique voices and all of her achievements to-date really show that the country cherishes her talents. We were delighted to welcome her into the band in 2016 setting center stage for a new generation of Danú’s sound. She is our lead vocalist and also features as a wonderful Tin Whistle player on some pieces.

Does the group write their own songs, and if so what does that process look like with 7 members?
Most of our material is based on ancient traditional music and song from Ireland, we have some carefully chosen newly composed pieces however in our mix, tradition is being made all the time so we try to play our part.

What do you hope the legacy of Danú will be?
Danú has been here for nearly 25 years and over the years has always presented Irelands best musicians in the line-up. We are never complacent about our music or performance and always strive to deliver a memorable show both for our audience and for ourselves. We now have new generations of musicians and bands been positively influenced by our music so we hope this will be our legacy into the future.

Tickets for the groups Friday, December 13 performance are still available! Buy Now